Activity 4.2: William James Chapters 11 and 14

Chapter 11: Attention

James’ 11^th chapter in Talks to Teachers is all about attention and how teachers can get students to attend more by making new and old concepts interesting, eliciting student interest from within (by making connections between previously learned/interesting material and new information), and constantly changing the modes of instruction used.  After giving instructions on how to capture student’s attention, James moves on by saying that attention levels and types differ between all people, but that there is no “right” level of attention; in some situations, being scatter-brained can be an asset, and in some situations, it can be a boon, just as being hyper-focused in some situations can be an asset or a boon. 

This chapter really interested me, as attention is something I struggle with personally and thus am interested in working on with students.  When James began talking about focusing on the dot as an example of voluntary attention, I was instantly reminded of what happens every time I try to do yoga.  I like the idea of yoga, however when it comes down to it, I do not have the attention span for it.  My voluntary attention during the activity (like my voluntary attention during most activities) maybe lasts about a minute.  Then, while trying to concentrate on nothing, I begin thinking about what homework I have left to do, what my plans for the weekend will be, if my friend has texted me back; and then I’m even more stressed out than I was before I started.  However, when I am reading (an activity I enjoy), I can sit and read, with my mind only focused on the material (especially if it’s a good book!), for hours. 

Attention is an issue for all kids in the classroom, and often teachers wonder why students in their classroom have trouble paying attention.  There are so many books, resources, websites, etc., that target the attention spans of children in the classroom; there are even books for children.  Julia Cook’s It’s Hard To Be A Verb! is a children’s book about a little boy, Louis, who has trouble paying attention.  He says, “My knees start itching.  My toes start twitching.  My skin gets jumpy.  Others get grumpy.  When it comes to siting still, its just not my deal” (Cook, p. 2).  Louis says he is always doing something, but most of the time he isn’t doing the “something” he should be.  This happens to most kids in classroom, and it is important to teach kids and teachers strategies for attention.

Chapter 14: Apperception

            James’ chapter on apperception first talks about what apperception is (“the act of taking a thing into the mind” (James, p. 77)), and then talks about how he thinks we process information, including connections through past experiences and how we associate new and old information together.  James also talks about the law of economy, a part of apperception that says when we learn new things, we try as hard as possible to assimilate them into our knowledge so that we don’t feel distress about not knowing; the rest of the chapter continues to discuss apperception and what it looks like for humans. 

            I think James is right when he suggests a good way we learn is by connecting to past experiences, because in my own experiences, connecting to things I already know when learning new concepts has been effective.  The reason I became a school psychologist happens to be in large part due to my mother’s work as a special education teacher.  Through her narrations of her experiences, I became passionate about helping children who struggle in school, and was able to start making connections as soon as I began learning about students with disabilities and how to help them.

            James talks about assimilation also in chapter 14.  A funny story (and also a connection outside my experiences) my aunt loves to tell- when my cousin was just beginning to talk, a snake got in the house.  My cousin did not know what it was, but because her mom was freaking out, she began to, also, and learned through her mom’s words that it was, “a nake!”.  So for about a month or two after, every long, straight or coiled thing, my cousin thought was a “nake”.  The garden hose, a piece of rope, vines- you name it, and she would immediately start getting visibly stressed until someone told her what it actually was.